John Mousinho should cave to this fan demand as Portsmouth FC struggles go on: View | OneFootball

Pompey fans want to see Elias Sorensen in the starting XI, and Mousinho should consider giving him a chance

Portsmouth's struggles in front of goal have been clear on their return to the Championship this season, and many fans are clamouring for the inclusion of one striker in the starting eleven to try and change their scoring fortunes.

Pompey finished on 78 goals scored throughout last season as they netted at will in League One, but they have found goals slightly harder to come by in the second-tier, with seven from as many league games so far this term.

That isn't so bad a record when compared to the likes of Cardiff City and Preston North End, who have each scored just two and four respectively in the same amount of league outings so far, but boss John Mousinho will still be concerned about his side's form and their failure to pick up a win as yet.

Their poor form could be down to a number of different reasons, but one certainly looks to be due to their lack of goals from strikers, with just two frontmen bagging up to this point in eight games in league and cup.

One of those is Christian Saydee, with a brace against Middlesbrough to earn his side a point at the Riverside, while summer signing Elias Sorensen netted on his debut for the club in the season opener at Leeds United, but has had to settle for limited minutes on the pitch since that great start.

With the goals drying up for Pompey in recent weeks, and fans calling for the 25-year-old to feature more, Mousinho needs to cave to fan pressure and give Sorensen consistent opportunities to prove himself going forward.

Sorensen was a surprise signing in the summer by Pompey, given he was plying his trade in the Danish second division for Esbjerg last season, but he had previously been on Newcastle United's books and out on loan in the EFL at Blackpool and Carlisle United, where he failed to score at either club.

Despite that unwanted record in English football prior to his move back to Denmark, he became a regular goalscorer in the second-tier in his native country, and bagged 27 goals in 32 games last term as Esbjerg were promoted to the top-flight, in doing so attracting the attention of Pompey.

He duly made the move to the South Coast in August for a reported fee of around £300,000 to bolster Mousinho's striking ranks ahead of their return to the Championship, and made the perfect start to life at Pompey with a goal on his debut against newly-relegated Leeds, as they eventually grabbed a vital point at Elland Road.

Those early signs of ability were promising from Sorensen, but he has since struggled to feature in Mousinho's side, and his continued absence from the starting eleven has left Portsmouth fans demanding to see him back in the team as they falter in front of goal every week.

After that Leeds game, he made two appearances off the bench before his next start against Middlesbrough, which was out of position on the left-wing, and has since made only one substitute appearance in the next four outings, leading many to wonder why he is not being selected ahead of the likes of Christian Saydee up front, or even Josh Murphy or Paddy Lane on either wing, as all are flattering to deceive at this moment in time.

It may be early in the campaign, but Pompey have some key games coming up against teams that they could be battling against relegation with come May, such as Stoke City, QPR and Cardiff City, and so Mousinho surely needs to give the Dane a chance to prove that he can be his go-to man for goals soon ahead of a long season.

Mousinho has played down Sorensen's impact

Mousinho has the final say on which team he wants to go out and win the game for Portsmouth, but the fact he has not seen Sorensen as worthy of many starts since his Leeds exploits has left some supporters baffled, yet he has previously offered some reasoning behind his decisions.

The Pompey boss faced an injury crisis in attack prior to his side's game against Burnley last month, with many expecting Sorensen to figure, and Mousinho spoke then about the work that the Dane needs to do to prove that he can be first-choice up front.

"Elias has probably been a bit unlucky not to have played a bit more," he told the on September 19.

"He came in on a weekend where we probably weren’t expecting him to be ready to start and faced Leeds, getting his goal. Then he came out - and was back in the side playing out of position at Middlesbrough, which was probably a bit unfair.

"He has shown some really good glimpses when he’s come on and been involved, but it’s about a period of adjustment for Elias as much as anyone else.

"He’s come over from playing at a different level and the whole adjustment is going to be a big learning curve for him.

"I think there's plenty more to come from him and, once he settles and once he gets a couple more goals, he will be on his way."

Mousinho also spoke highly of Christian Saydee's form in the early stages of the season, which may have explained Sorensen's lack of minutes.

He said: "Christian has come in and done a fantastic job.

"He scored two goals at Middlesbrough and was a real handful in the other games as well. It’s not necessarily the position we would have seen for him this season, but he has come in and deputised, doing really well.

"The only reason we’re continuing to play Christian is because of how well he has done."

That reasoning was probably fair at that point, but Saydee had just one touch in the Clarets' box in 77 minutes at Turf Moor, and then was benched against Sheffield United for young loanee striker Mark O'Mahony, who similarly struggled and had the least touches of any outfield player to play 90 minutes in that game, according to Fotmob.

There seems like little to lose for Mousinho in regard to Sorensen going forward, and he will surely be offered more game-time in the coming weeks as Pompey search for an answer to their goalscoring woes.